The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1887-07-23
THE MANDOLIN.
Pleasing Italian Musical Instrument
that Is just Now In Fashion.

The mandolin is the reigning fash
ionable caprice, having quite superseded
the banjo in the esteem of the ladies.
That it should have done so is by no
means strange, for it Is really charm
ing little instrument when at all de-
Gently played, is not very difficult to
learn, and has a good deal more style
and finish about it than the banjo has.
However the latter may be adorned
with nickel-plating, mo;her-of-pearl,
and all sorts of gaudy ornamcntation.
it has a pleDeian look about it and sug
gests the idea of feld-hand in his
Sunday suit.
The only unpleasant feature about it
to the learner is the knife-blade-like
sharpness Of its fine wire strings. There
are eight strings, in pairs. all OF steel
wire. Two pairs are wound with Ger
man silver, and are not so cruel rs the
others, but unwound four, hardly thicker
than horse hairs, seem To cut To the
bone the finger ends that press them
down upon the frets. OF course that
pain and trouble ends when each
finger of the left hand is tipped with a
bony, callous spot, and one must expect
some such trouble in forming a close
acquaintance with any stringed instru-
ment. When nature has provided that
protection, the mandolin player. if an
expert. can produce some very pleasing
effects by producing the tones by per-
cussion on the strings over the frets.
instead of by sirumming with bit of
tortoise shell held between the thumb
and forelinger of the right hand, which
is the ordinary way of playing.
The Spanish mandola is much like
the Italian mandolin in its gem
eral features, but has important
differences from it nevertheless. Its
body is shallower, shaped more like the
bowl of spoon than the half of an egg
divided lengthwise, which is the form
of the instrument beloved in Naples
and Rome; its strings are of catgut in
stead of steel, and its tone is not so
sharp and incisive. Either mandola or
mandolin, however, has surprising
volume of sound for SO small Il body.
and dominates pleasingly the tones Of
a guitar, or even those OF a piano.
Expert players have a way of main
tanning an increasing tremolando by
keeping the little instrument in Il con-
stantly quivcring motion while they are
executing a solo. that at least looks as
if it would be rather hard 10 effect and
harder yet to continue for any length Of
time, but the lengthcning of vibrations
thus achieved prettily supplies the lack
of n supporting instrument The power
of controlling the volume of sound in n
crescendo or dlminuendo possessed bv a
skillful performer is really surprising
and extremely effective in rendition OF
the peculiar passionate and sensuous
music to which the mandolin is best
adapted.
While the mandolin is easy to learn.
up to a certain point, it is. like all
seemingly simple instruments, very
difficult to develop TO its highest artistic
capabilities, and the Italian who has
achieved complete mastery of it not
only very justly respects himself highly,
but is even respected in an extraordinary
degree by his countrymen. The best
players are said to come from Naples,
where a native who does not at least
think that he can play upon the man
dolin is a curiosity. Here in New York
we have not many who descrvedly rank
high as experts. Prof. Dominica Tip
aldi is regarded as = very correct and
artistic performer, but in expression and
delicacy Of tone shading Signor +. "A.
Errco, who is proprietor of an Italian
art and curiosity store in John street,
and only an amateur mandolinist, is
deemed 10y critics the most finished
artist here. But inferior players find
as much employment as they want in
teaching the mandolin to the young
men and women of Gotham's "upper
ten," and from present indications the
instrument will be the rage when fash
ion returns TO the town with the early
frosts.
A good mandolin costs from S25 to
$50, and all procurable here are i'm
ported from Naples.-M y. Sua.
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